Axios
Oct 3, 2017
As former Trump adviser Roger Stone told me: “Base would go insane and he knows it.”
I asked Steve Bannon whether he could imagine Trump pivoting to the left on guns after the Las Vegas massacre. “Impossible: will be the end of everything,” Bannon texted. When asked whether Trump’s base would react worse to this than they would if he supported an immigration amnesty bill, Bannon replied: “as hard as it is to believe actually worse.”
Why sources close to Trump think it’s unlikely he’ll pivot — in any substantial way — to gun control:
- The NRA relationship: “POTUS (correctly) believes he doesn’t owe anything to most traditional Republican outside groups, because they didn’t lift a finger to help him in the election,” said a Trump administration source. “NRA is very much the exception. They stayed loyal through it all and kept spending.” We’re told Trump feels a personal connection to the NRA and is close to the NRA’s top lobbyist, Chris Cox.
- People he talks to haven’t heard old views surfacing: “In the past Donald was very pro-gun control on automatic rifles, but I doubt he’s going to make an issue out of it this time and pick a fight with the NRA,” said a New York-based conservative operative who has advised Trump. “Perhaps down the road.”
- His base might leave him: As Steve Bannon and other conservatives close to Trump argue, gun owners are even more passionate about their issue than immigration hardliners. And, as a senior GOP aide pointed out, DACA has at least has a chance of passage. “Most agree something needs to be done,” the source said. “Can’t say the same for gun control — at least in Congress.”
- His sons: A number of sources close to Trump cited the strong pro-Second Amendment views of his sons Don Jr. and Eric. Don Jr. made much of his passions for shooting and hunting on the campaign and is closely…